1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of automatically editing programmed recordings, such that when a VCR is programmed to record a plurality of programs, related programs among the plurality of programs are recorded in a continuous manner.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Generally, users program their VCRs to record several programs during the week and then reproduce and watch the recorded programs all at once, such as on weekends. In particular, when a serial drama or an educational program is to be recorded by programmed recording, it is preferable to record related programs that, for example, are part of a series of programs, in a serial manner.
For example, the following programmed recordings are assumed to be carried out in the following manner.
Program A: 20:00-21:00, Tuesday through Friday.
Program B: 22:00-23:00, Wednesday and Friday.
In this case, as shown in FIG. 1, the programs are recorded in the order they are broadcast, namely: A, A', B, A", A'", B', where A corresponds to the first segment of program A broadcast on Tuesday, A' corresponds to the second segment of program A broadcast on Wednesday, B corresponds to the first segment of program B broadcast on Wednesday, and A" corresponds to the third segment of program A broadcast on Thursday, etc. That is, regardless of whether the subsequent program to be recorded is related to the previously recorded program, programs are recorded on the recording medium in the same order in which they are broadcast. Therefore, in order to watch a series of related recorded-programs in a continuous manner, a user must perform the bothersome operation of rewinding or fast forwarding the medium to the next recorded segment of the program.
Meanwhile, U.S. Pat. No. 4,745,549 entitled "METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR OPTIMAL SCHEDULING OF TELEVISION PROGRAMMING TO MAXIMIZE CUSTOMER SATISFACTION" discloses a technique such that an individual television program list can be edited according to the user's taste. This technique includes reading the user's favorable data based on a new subscriber's favorable data signal and questions, evaluating a television program in accordance with a predetermined standard for obtaining program evaluation data, generating an optimum program list in response to the program evaluation data and the subscriber's taste data, printing a program list on the recording medium from the optimum program list, correcting the program evaluation data, and inputting the corrected data to improve the reliability of the list and the user's dissatisfaction with the program list, and setting a VCR or television in accordance with the program list.
In the above described conventional technique, the optimum program list data can be edited according to the user's taste based on data signals and questions representing a new user's tastes. However, the above described invention cannot record a series of related programs in a continuous manner.